Browsing by Subject "Autism spectrum disorders"
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Item Assessing the reliability and validity of SAA RED, an interpersonal interaction model designed to assist those with Asperger's Syndrome(2006-05) Jones, Ráchele Jayne; Layton, Carol A.; Lock, Robin; Griffin-Shirley, Nora; Roach, DavidSAA RED, an interpersonal interaction model primarily based on communication theories, was created to assist individuals on the autism spectrum to build and maintain relationships. The purpose of study was to investigate the internal and external validity of SAA RED in order to better assess SAA RED's worth. IDEA 2004 states that teacher preparation should include "the use of scientifically based instructional practices, to the maximum extent possible;" (IDEA 2004, §682(c)(5)(E)). The concept of scientifically based implies that these practices have been shown to have strong reliability and validity. Reliability refers to the confidence one can have that the instrument will have the same results with little variation over time demonstrated with stability of results (Frey, Botan, Kreps, 2000; Overton, 2003). Validity seeks to discover how well the assessment measures what it is supposed to measure. Within validity scores one can test for internal and external validity. Internal validity discovers whether the model was "designed and conducted such that it leads to accurate findings about the phenomena being investigated for the particular group of people" (Frey, et al., 2000, p. 109). While external validity answers the question "how generalizable are the results?" (Frey, et al., 2000). In order for a program to be generalizable, the program must be replicable.Item Assessing the reliability and validity of SAA RED, an interpersonal interaction model designed to assist those with Asperger's Syndrome(Texas Tech University, 2006-05) Jones, Ráchele JayneSAA RED, an interpersonal interaction model primarily based on communication theories, was created to assist individuals on the autism spectrum to build and maintain relationships. The purpose of study was to investigate the internal and external validity of SAA RED in order to better assess SAA RED's worth. IDEA 2004 states that teacher preparation should include "the use of scientifically based instructional practices, to the maximum extent possible;" (IDEA 2004, §682(c)(5)(E)). The concept of scientifically based implies that these practices have been shown to have strong reliability and validity. Reliability refers to the confidence one can have that the instrument will have the same results with little variation over time demonstrated with stability of results (Frey, Botan, Kreps, 2000; Overton, 2003). Validity seeks to discover how well the assessment measures what it is supposed to measure. Within validity scores one can test for internal and external validity. Internal validity discovers whether the model was "designed and conducted such that it leads to accurate findings about the phenomena being investigated for the particular group of people" (Frey, et al., 2000, p. 109). While external validity answers the question "how generalizable are the results?" (Frey, et al., 2000). In order for a program to be generalizable, the program must be replicable.Item The cerebellum and divided attention in autism spectrum disorders(2014-08) Hsu, Julie Yong; Allen, Greg, doctor of clinical psychologyDivided attention, or the ability to respond to more than one task simultaneously, is an important skill for navigating complex social, communicative, academic, and professional settings. The purpose of the current study was to understand the association between the volume of the posterior cerebellum and divided attention in individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and control participants. It was hypothesized that the ASD group would have worse divided attention abilities and smaller posterior cerebellar volumes compared to the control group. Furthermore, reduced posterior cerebellar volume was expected to be associated with weaker divided attention abilities. Participants were young adult males with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders (n=15) and controls matched for age, handedness, and nonverbal IQ (n=19). Results showed partial support for worse divided attention performance in ASDs and for a positive association between posterior cerebellar volume and divided attention performance. There were no group differences in posterior cerebellar volume, and accounting for intracranial volume did not affect findings. Limitations of the current study and future directions are discussed.Item Feature generation of EEG data using wavelet analysis(2012-05) Chesnutt, Catherine F; Baker, Mary C.; O'Boyle, Michael; Nutter, BrianWavelet analysis is a modern method of time-frequency analysis that can be used to analyze EEG signals. There are several popular methods of generating wavelet-based features for the purposes of classification and brain modeling. These methods generate one feature per wavelet decomposition level, effectively averaging out the temporal information contained in the wavelet transform. This thesis proposes a method of generating features based on segments of the continuous wavelet transform and provides a Matlab software tool capable of generating features of EEG data using this and a number of other methods. The methods are then tested in an example study on attention networks in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). There is evidence of a selective attention abnormality in autism that is identified by the attention network task (ANT). The primary area of activation in the brain related to selective attention is the prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate. The ANT task was given to a group of five participants diagnosed with ASD and a control group of five neuro-typical participants. The EEGs were recorded using a 64-channel EGI system and preprocessed using EEGLab. The Matlab software tool proposed herein was used to generate features of the data using coherence, conventional average power, wavelet-power, and time-segmented wavelet power. The results are examined by comparing the number of features that pass a t-test for each method. The time-averaged wavelet power method produced more significant features than conventional average power, and the time-segmented wavelet power method produced more features than the time-averaged wavelet-power method. As hypothesized, the prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate were the most significant area of activation for the wavelet-based methods. The average values of the power features were larger in the autistic group, while the average values of coherence were larger in the controls group. The occipital lobe was also an area of significant difference between the autistic and controls groups but not within the groups, supporting evidence of hypersensitivity to visual stimuli in autistic individuals. While the time-averaged wavelet method produced a small number of significant features, the time-segmented wavelet method produced a much larger number of significant features that create a model of the unfolding nature of the processes of the brain.Item Pre-service teacher-implemented Social Stories™ intervention for students with autism spectrum disorders in general education settings(2009-08) Chan, Jeffrey Michael; O’Reilly, Mark F.Social Stories™ are one of the most commonly-used interventions for children with autism (Green et al., 2006; Hess, Morrier, Heflin, & Ivey, 2008; Stahmer, Collings, & Palinkas, 2005). While there is a rapidly-growing literature base of Social Stories research, much of the work has focused on student behavior in special education resource settings; the current study examines the use of Social Stories with students in inclusive general education settings. Six students diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders participated and behaviors that occurred in the general education classroom were selected as targets. Pre-service teachers, autism resource teachers, and a paraprofessional were trained to implement the intervention. Social Stories were presented on a personal computer for 5 of 6 participants; the 6th participant’s Social Story was presented in a bound book. Participants were observed in their general education classrooms during 30 min data collection sessions. A multiple baseline across participants design was used. For 3 participants, an alternating treatments design was also used, which examined 2 viii conditions: an Immediate condition in which classroom probes were conducted immediately following Social Stories intervention sessions, and a Delay condition in which a time delay of at least 3.5 hrs was presented between intervention and observation sessions. Results of the Immediate vs. Delay conditions show no conclusive effects of one condition over the other. Overall, results indicate improvements in target behaviors for 5 of 6 participants. Peer comparison data indicate that participants who showed improvement in their behavior performed the target skills at levels comparable to classmates without disabilities. Treatment fidelity data indicate that pre-service teachers were able to accurately implement the intervention over the course of the study. Social validity questionnaires were distributed to in-service and pre-service teachers, who rated the intervention as acceptable and feasible within the classroom setting. Implications for practice and future research directions are discussed.Item PROMOTING AN AWARENESS OF RESEARCH-BASED BEHAVIOR INTERVENTIONS IN AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDERS USING AN ONLINE BEHAVIOR MODULE(2011-05) Pani, Jayasri; Lock, Robin; Elkins, Leann; Myers, SusanThe recent increase in the number of children being diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has led to increasing demand for information by professionals, parents, students and educators. ASD has been defined as a developmental disorder usually identified in early childhood between 18 and 30 months of age. One of the core symptoms of ASD is a dysfunction in social behavior. In response to a growing need for information on research-based interventions for ASD, the Burkhart Center for Autism Education and Research at Texas Tech University developed an online format module designed to build the knowledge and skill base of professionals, caregivers and parents working with students with ASD. Research-based interventions provide the framework to incorporate what is known from research into real-world practice in a manner accessible to families, responsive to what children need, and consistent with what providers can accomplish, given available skills and resources. The module utilizes an online format with several research-based interventions to provide a strong foundation in autism education. The main findings of the research established the behavior module as an effective learning tool in benefiting children with ASD. Subjects who were exposed to the behavior module demonstrated extensive improvement in their content knowledge and showed enormous satisfaction with the module. In other words, the behavior module was certainly helpful to promote participants’ content knowledge in ASD.Item The signing of deaf children with autism : lexical phonology and perspective-taking in the visual-spatial modality(2010-05) Shield, Aaron Michael; Meier, Richard P.; Cohen, Leslie B.; Beaver, David; Neal-Beevers, A. Rebecca; Quinto-Pozos, DavidThis dissertation represents the first systematic study of the sign language of deaf children with autism. The signing of such children is of particular interest because of the unique ways that some of the known impairments of autism are likely to interact with sign language. In particular, the visual-spatial modality of sign requires signers to understand the visual perspectives of others, a skill which may require theory of mind, which is thought to be delayed in autism (Baron-Cohen et al., 1985). It is hypothesized that an impairment in visual perspective-taking could lead to phonological errors in American Sign Language (ASL), specifically in the parameters of palm orientation, movement, and location. Twenty-five deaf children and adolescents with autism (10 deaf-of-deaf and 15 deaf-of-hearing) between the ages of 4;7 and 20;3 as well as a control group of 13 typically-developing deaf-of-deaf children between the ages of 2;7 and 6;9 were observed in a series of studies, including naturalistic observation, lexical elicitation, fingerspelling, imitation of nonsense gestures, two visual perspective-taking tasks, and a novel sign learning task. The imitation task was also performed on a control group of 24 hearing, non-signing college students. Finally, four deaf mothers of deaf autistic children were interviewed about their children’s signing. Results showed that young deaf-of-deaf autistic children under the age of 10 are prone to making phonological errors involving the palm orientation parameter, substituting an inward palm for an outward palm and vice versa. There is very little evidence that such errors occur in the typical acquisition of ASL or any other sign language. These results indicate that deaf children with autism are impaired from an early age in a cognitive mechanism involved in the acquisition of sign language phonology, though it remains unclear which mechanism(s) might be responsible. This research demonstrates the importance of sign language research for a more complete understanding of autism, as well as the need for research into atypical populations for a better understanding of sign language linguistics.Item Speech and prosody characteristics of children with autism spectrum disorders(2015-05) Reyna, Samantha Nicole; Davis, Barbara L. (Barbara Lockett); Franco, Jessica HThe objective of this study was to examine if segmental and prosodic patterns of young children with autism differ from typically developing peers. We compared 4 children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) to their developmentally-age matched peers. ASD participants in this study did not demonstrate segmental deficit patterns as much as language delays. Excessive, misplaced, and reduced stress and slowed articulation rate in utterances were the two greatest prosodic deficits ASD participants in this study demonstrated. These prosodic deficits, or delays, were quantitatively assessed, and seemed to be the qualitative characteristics often associated with ASD children in previous research. Our findings suggest that early intervention approaches for prosodic differences could be beneficial for children with ASD and their families with a concise, standardized diagnostic tool to assess prosodic differences more accurately.